Velarian

There’s a lot of history at that venue. 
 

I remember going to watch a mates band playing there in 90s. We weren’t sure how to get there from the hotel we were staying at so we got a taxi. After 15 minutes or so and many twists and turns we forked out a small fortune to pay the driver. Turned out it was less than five minutes walk away. 😂

5 minutes ago, horrorshowbass said:

Weight?

1kg according to the tub. 😂

Designed by M. C. Escher perhaps? 😉

I just stumbled upon this quirky piece from the BBC archive.

Fascinating stuff from these pioneers. 
 

It’s amazing how enduring goth has become. I was in Leeds the other day and there was a goth girl, immaculately turned out in all her dark finery. She would be late teens/early twenties and my first thought was, crikey, it’s around 40 years since this look first took hold and her mother could have looked just like that. 

How about playing closer to the bridge to make tighter and less boomy?

I've PM'd @waldemar to enquire about making some control plates in chrome. He's not been online since October last year though so I'm not sure if I'll get a quick reply. We shall see.

1 hour ago, Beedster said:

Stingray plate won’t fit, I tried on standard Fender P. I’ve got two Precision versions somewhere, if I can find them you can have them 😀

Agreed. I tried a stingray plate on my bitsa precision and whilst you can position it on the body in a way that looks OK, when the controls are fitted and sitting in the routing, the positioning is way off and the only way to make it work would be to butcher the routing.

I looked everywhere for a chrome control plate based on the tail end of a precision pick guard but they just don't seem to exist. As mentioned by @PaulThePlug I ended up creating one by getting a mirrored acrylic pick guard (ala Phill Lynott) and cutting it down with a hacksaw and filing the edges (pic below).

I'd always intend to look at getting one custom made but just never got around to it. Much later I came across this post from a fellow BassChatter who does custom CNC work and it looks like he might be more than capable of producing the required part. Once again, I never got around to following it up.

I did wonder if custom work might be expensive and if there are any economies of scale to be gained by producing a few in one batch. If this is something the OP would want to pursue, I wouldn't mind sharing the cost of a limited run.

Go on now, go, walk out the door
Just turn around now
'Cause you're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried to hurt me with goodbye?
You think I'd crumble?
You think I'd lay down and die?

Oh no, not I, I will survive

2 hours ago, simisker said:

Apparently, responding to a ten year old post... a decade old post... a post that is a TENTH OF A CENTURY old... with "they rushed it" is too dry for some 😜

I got it. Maybe dry humour is a Yorkshire thing? 😉

Perhaps resurrecting a decade old thread wasn’t such a good idea after all and I’m due a damn good thrashing? (Int’ shoebox, int’ middle of road like).

The only green thing I like is my lawn. 

Bongo prototype?

Is the lack of a date stamp on the neck a problem?

On 27/03/2023 at 05:31, Velarian said:

I used to use a Teac A-108 cassette deck which allowed you record left and right channels separately. I would have loved a 4-track portastudio but they were outside of my budget. 
 

 

My mate from back in the day recently sent me this photo, which was taken just a couple of years or so after the Teac cassette days.
 

This would have been around ‘85/86. By that time we’d pooled our resources and invested in this setup with a Tascam 38, which was a considerable upgrade from Teac cassette deck (which was still in use for producing cassette copies and is on top of the outboard rack).  

All I ever ‘ad were a bent bit o’ tin. Works well enough. 

On 10/11/2013 at 16:23, ChickenKiev said:

The next big thing is the Evertune bridge.

At the minute they only have it for guitar but I predict it won't be long until we start seeing an Evertune for bass.

They also need to develop some sort of Evertune tremolo system and we'll be set.

Zombie thread resurrection alert!

Looks like the future has now arrived. Emperor's new clothes or genuine progress?

On reflection I’m not sure it is exactly how I remember it and it maybe not a solution after all but worth a try perhaps?

7 hours ago, ossyrocks said:

I’d like to find that.

I managed to find the post but the picture is missing.

I think it’s referring to these things: -

I saw a post on here a little while ago which had a picture of a bass where there was a little cube with a hole in it which went between the string ball and the back plate of the bridge. This pulls the string back a bit to clear the silk from the saddle. I had a look for the picture but couldn’t find it. However, it’s academic now that you’ve solved it. 

It’s gone already!

20 minutes ago, ossyrocks said:

Which one? 😂

I was thinking of the one in your avatar pic but if there’s a choice… 😂

Great idea. I’ll do something similar.

EDIT: P.S. can I have your P Bass? 😉

2 hours ago, GuyR said:

You make an excellent point, and on the face of it, auction does seem an unattractive prospect, but the margin between the “true value” of the item as you correctly describe it, and the net proceeds received by the seller, is in the same region as if you sell to a dealer, in my experience.
As a seller, some of the attractions in selling at auction are:

Convenience- Absolutely no need for any contact with the buying public. 
Transparency- The price is set by demand in a public setting, so if selling on behalf of a deceased estate for example, beneficiaries cannot quibble.

Opportunity for a very good outcome - auction lots regularly sell well above the guide prices. If buyers have travelled and the instrument is a good or rare example, they may well make several bids past their original intended limit, rather than go home empty handed. Buyers will also often go home with an instrument other than the one they came to buy, increasing the price of their second choice instrument.

Buyers can very much get caught up in the moment. In a recent GH auction, a refin 65 Strat was sold at £15k before premium or £18900 total, which is £5400 above what I was offered a original finish example for a few weeks ago. Conversely, I remember GH selling a Rick turner renaissance bass a few years ago for circa £500, and as I have mentioned before, I have bought a very original 66 Telecaster there for £5500 including commission.

I do think for sellers of quality vintage kit, a good dealer such as bass gallery or ATB, selling on consignment at 15% commission is the sweet spot. I have certainly found it so.

In my opinion, auction is a great venue to buy, but you need confidence in your ability to make a judgement as it’s not a retail environment. Bargains are also fewer these days. 

 

 

All excellent points and I guess the deceased estate example is a relatively common scenario. I know I wouldn’t relish the hassle of selling my basses privately and my wife wouldn’t have a clue what to do when I’ve popped my clogs, so an auction would be a likely outcome.

This auction example makes me wonder why it’s worth selling at auction at all. If buyers take into account the buyer’s premium plus VAT and end up paying a total price that represents the true value of the item, in this case £3,600, then the seller would net just under £2,300 after commission and VAT. £1,300 is quite a hefty hit to take on what might be achieved elsewhere.